Hillel I. Newman, «A Hippodrome on the Road to Ephrath», Vol. 86 (2005) 213-228
LXX to Gen 48,7 refers to a hippodrome in the vicinity of
Rachel’s Tomb. This cannot be satisfactorily explained as an exegetical creation
of the translator’s imagination and probably refers to a genuine structure. This
is also true of the stadium or hippodrome mentioned in Tg. Onq. to Gen
14,17, as the meeting place of Abram, the king of Sodom, and Melchizedek. Since
1QapGen locates the same meeting in the Valley of Beth Hakerem, which should be
identified as the valley between Ramat Rahel and Bethlehem, it is reasonable to
assume that both versions refer to the same hippodrome. There is no textual
justification for assuming a late interpolation in LXX and no geographical or
archeological justification for explaining these passages as allusions to a
Herodian hippodrome. LXX may attest to a case of profound Hellenistic influence
in Judea already under Ptolemaic rule.
A Hippodrome on the Road to Ephrath 217
these are presumably one and the same structure, now uncovered in
excavations (14).
Is this sufficient reason to assume a Herodian or post-Herodian
interpolation of the hippodrome in LXX? It could be, were it not for two
things: first, there is no known Herodian hippodrome in the area implied
by LXX; second, Hellenistic, pre-Roman hippodromes were simple,
non-monumental structures that would not necessarily leave traces for us
to find. Accordingly, Humphrey has suggested giving credence to the
LXX allusion as is, taking it as evidence for the existence of just such a
Hellenistic arena (15), and so, more recently has Patrich (16). According to
the plain meaning of the text, we would expect this race-course to have
stood somewhere in the vicinity of Rachel’s Tomb, along the road
approaching Bethlehem from the north. I will argue below that even in
the absence of any physical remains of the hippodrome of LXX, the
material evidence of the region points away from the Herodian period to
an earlier, definable era. It will be helpful, however, first to introduce
another ancient Bible version into our discussion.
2. Targum Onqelos to Gen 14,17
Gen 14,17 tells us that upon his return from the successful
campaign against Chedorlaomer and his allies, Abram was greeted by
the king of Sodom in “the Valley of Shaveh, which is the King’s
Valley†(17). By implication, it is there too that Abram is blessed in the
(14) B.J. 1.659, 666; Ant. 17.175, 178, 193-194, 233. For a description of the
finds see E. NETZER – R. LAUREYS-CHACHY, “The Hippodrome in Jericho. A
Multi-Functional Complexâ€, E. NETZER, Hasmonean and Herodian Palaces at
Jericho. Final Reports of the 1973-1987 Excavations (Jerusalem 2004) II, 195-
225. Against the presence of a race-course at lower Herodium see E. NETZER, The
Palaces of the Hasmoneans and Herod the Great (Jerusalem 2001) 114-116.
(15) HUMPHREY, Roman Circuses, 530; cf. p. 535 on makeshift Hellenistic
hippodromes. Humphrey unfortunately confuses the Tomb of Rachel with that of
the Patriarchs at Hebron.
(16) PATRICH, “On the Lost Circusâ€, 186, n. 51: “It is quite possible that during
the Hellenistic period there existed in this flat area, on top of the Judaean ridge,
far from Jerusalem and to the south, a simple Hellenistic-type race course, with no
architectural structureâ€.
(17) MT: ˚lmh qm[ awh hwç qm[. For the meeting of Melchizedek and Abram
according to the Targums see M. MCNAMARA, “Melchizedek: Gen 14,17-20 in
the Targums, in Rabbinic and Early Christian Literatureâ€, Bib 81 (2000) 1-31; cf.
P. GRELOT, “De L’Apocryphe de la Genèse aux Targoums: sur Genèse 14, 18-
20â€, Intertestamental Essays in honour of J.T. Milik (ed. Z.J. KAPERA) (Kraków
1992) 77-90.